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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. fall — to drop
  3. game — wild animals
  4. perch — the fish
  5. ground — the earth
  6. land — to come down
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. ground — crushed
  9. game — a match
  10. root — the cause
  11. fall — to drop
  12. ground — a position
  13. fall — the season
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. land — a country
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. root — of a plant
  21. bulb — for light
  22. land — ground
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. root — of a word

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com